Use appropriate barrier precautions when exposure of skin and mucous membranes to blood, blood droplets, or other body fluids is anticipated.
Use personal protective equipment devices to protect eyes, face, head, extremities, air passages, and clothing. This equipment must always be used during invasive procedures. Ensure proper fit.
Gloves
Wear gloves when collecting and handling specimens; touching blood, urine, other body fluids, mucous membranes, or nonintact skin; or performing vascular access procedures or other invasive procedures.
Wear gloves when handling items or surfaces soiled with blood, urine, or body fluids.
Mandate wearing of gloves when the healthcare worker’s skin is cut, abraded, or chapped during examination of a patient’s oropharynx, GI or genitourinary tract, nonintact or abraded skin, or active bleeding wounds and when cleaning specimen containers or engaged in decontaminating procedures.
Possible exceptions to use of gloves:
When gloves impede palpation of veins for venipuncture (e.g., neonates, patients who are morbidly obese)
In a life-threatening situation in which delay could be fatal (wash hands and wear gloves as soon as possible)
Disposable gloves must be changed:
When moving between patients
When moving from a contaminated to a cleaner site on a patient or on an environmental surface
When gloves are torn or punctured or their barrier function is compromised (do so as soon as feasible)
Clinical Alert
Gloves, barrier gowns, aprons, and masks are worn only at the site of use. They are disposed of appropriately at the site of use.
Gowns, Masks, and Eye Protection
Wearing of gowns, aprons, or fluid-impervious laboratory coats to cover all exposed skin is necessary whenever there is a potential for splashing onto clothing.
Gowns or aprons may not be hung and reused.
Wear masks correctly situated over nose and chin and tied at the crown of the head and the nape of the neck. Do not hang the mask around the neck. Change the mask when it becomes moist.
Wear mask, face shields, and goggles (or prescription glasses with side shields) when contamination of eye, nose, or mouth from fluid is most likely to occur.
Shoe covers should be worn in areas where contamination might occur (e.g., operating room, obstetrics, or emergency department). These are disposed of at the site of care.
Provide masks, Ambu bags, or other ventilation devices as part of emergency resuscitation equipment kept in strategic locations.